Austrian Grand Prix

Not just energy drinks: Formula 1 within the Red Bull ecosystem

Formula 1 returns to Europe for the Austrian leg at the home of Red Bull, a company that has become a key player in many sporting ecosystems, including Formula 1, where it represents two out of ten teams

24 June 2025

7' min read

The 2025 edition of the Montreal GP saw a balanced Formula 1, with a close fight not only for the podium, but also for victory. However, the impatience of Lando Norris caused a Safety Car that perhaps prevented a fiery finale. The British driver, author up to lap 66 of a great comeback, tried to overtake his team-mate but hit him head-on. The contact could have caused a double retirement for the McLarens, but Oscar Piastri's car suffered no damage and finished fourth, bringing home twelve precious points in view of the world championship.

In this first weekend of the year without McLaren on the podium, the spotlight is undoubtedly shone on the Mercedes team. George Russell, to convince Toto Wolff to extend his contract, is the protagonist of a masterful performance with pole position, victory and fastest lap. The English driver is not the only one of the Stuttgart house's bearers on the podium: Andrea Kimi Antonelli conquers the third position, bringing an Italian driver back on the podium after 16 years, i.e. since when Jarno Trulli celebrated his second place at the wheel of the Toyota in the Japanese Grand Prix in 2009.

Ferrari, fifth and sixth at the finish, pay for unfortunate qualifying (Leclerc) and one marmot too many (Hamilton), but also a growing tension within the Scuderia, manifested by Fred Vasseur's statements against part of the Italian press. The French manager has explicitly pointed out how the rumours about the replacement of drivers, managers and technicians in Scuderia Ferrari are fuelling nervousness and annoyances that are not good for the team. Vasseur, whose contract expires at the end of the year, led Ferrari in 2023 and 2024 to performances in line with the end of the previous Binotto management (with a second and a third place). The feeling is that, beyond this season's disappointing performances, Fred's renewal will be very much linked to the performance of the single-seater designed for the new technical cycle that opens in 2026.

Having archived the Montreal race with a second place, Max Verstappen heads into the Austrian Grand Prix with high hopes of getting even closer to the Mclaren drivers. Red Bull's home Grand Prix has always been favourable to the Dutch champion, who already has five victories under his belt at this track. The Spielberg circuit, owned by Red Bull, is one of the many investments the Austrian group has made in the sport. Let us look at some of the stages of this success story, not only sporting but also economic.

LE CLASSIFICHE

From a Thai drink to a giant in the energy drink market

Red Bull's main competitive advantage is that it has succeeded in transforming marketing from a means of communication into the product itself. By conveying its brand through sport, the company has integrated itself into the sport itself, as for example in Formula 1, where it represents two out of ten teams.

It all started on a business trip to Thailand, where the Austrian Dietrich Mateschitz to combat jet lag tried the Krating Daeng drink produced by the company of the Thai entrepreneur Chaleo Yoovidhya. Enthusiastic about the product, he convinced Yoovidhya to set up a company in 1984 to adapt the drink for the European market: addition of bubbles and innovative metal can instead of glass. The rest was very similar to the original, including the famous logo.

First the Austrian market was penetrated with the product launch in 1987. During the 1990s, it expanded throughout Europe before conquering a large part of the US market in 1997. At the end of 2024, Red Bull claims more than 12 billion cans sold in 178 countries, an increase of 4.4 percentage points over the previous year's figures.

When they founded the company in 1984, Yoovidhya and Mateschitz invested about half a million dollars each, splitting the shares with 49% each. The remaining 2% was assigned to Chaleo Yoovidhya's son, Chalerm, now the richest man in Thailand, having inherited yet another part of his father's empire.

The Austrian giant's financial results speak for themselves, showing a healthy and continuously growing company, which recorded an impressive EUR 2.9 billion operating profit in 2023. The investment in human resources (more than 17,000 employees) and the virtual absence of debt are strong evidence of the group's financial success. In the graph you can see the data on the group's main balance sheet items from 2016 to 2023.

One of Red Bull's greatest successes has been to be able to grow and scale globally without having to go public, while maintaining a great capacity for self-financing that still sees it record no debt on its balance sheet. Significantly, the company has not experienced a downturn even during the challenges of the 2020 and 2021 pandemic crisis.

PRINCIPALI GRANDEZZE ECONOMICHE DEL GRUPPO RED BULL

From word of mouth to media omnipresence: Red Bull's winning marketing

If the first marketing strategies in the 1990s were essentially based on letting university students try Red Bull for free, hoping for efficient word-of-mouth, the key was to use sport as an image vehicle. Countless sponsorships and appearances in all kinds of sports leagues led the brand to be valued at $19 billion in 2024 (source: Statista). Today, Red Bull is one of the top players not only in the energy drink sector, but also in the music, sports and technology sectors: for example, in Formula 1, it has even started in-house production of power units, Red Bull Powertrains.

The Red Bull ecosystem consists of many companies controlled by the Austrian giant that operate in sectors far removed from their original core business. These include: the ice hockey teams of Munich (Germany) and Salzburg (Austria), football clubs around the world (Brazil, Austria, Japan, Germany and the USA), Esports teams (OG) and Red Bull Records, a record label based in Los Angeles, active since 2007. Some of the sports championships in which Red Bull participates are summarised in the following table.

ECOSISTEMA RED BULL NEL PANORAMA SPORTIVO

The Austrian company is omnipresent in the world of sports, especially extreme sports. This is not accidental, but linked to the coherence with the target customers who are young and attracted by a product with a dynamic and energetic image, just like the athletes that the company sponsors. Consider that in Italy alone, Red Bull sponsors as many as twenty-four Italian athletes who play seventeen different types of sport (see table below). It is important to emphasise that in some of these sports, Red Bull sponsorship can totally change the athlete's professional trajectory, guaranteeing solid economic support and even greater notoriety.

ATLETI ITALIANI SPONSORIZZATI DA RED BULL

Red Bull in Formula 1: Milton Keynes and Faenza

Red Bull Racing officially entered Formula 1 as a team for the 2005 season under the management of Christian Horner, who remains team principal to this day. The team was founded after taking over Jaguar GP, a team based in Milton Keynes and originally conceived by Jackie Stewart in 1997 before subsequent resales to Ford and Jaguar. Red Bull was already present as a sponsor in Formula One, colouring the Sauber. However, few could have imagined that Red Bull would be able to believe in the project so much that it would quickly achieve resounding results.

Red Bull's commitment to Formula 1 was such that it even bought a second team, Minardi of Faenza in 2006. Having a direct partner within the circus has been a winning strategy, even if in some cases criticised and laced with suspicion. An interesting fact is that the group's first victory came with the smaller team, by Sebastian Vettel in the 2008 Monza Grand Prix.

From 2007, the team began a long partnership with Renault, with whom it achieved great success in Formula 1, reaching the world title in 2010 and repeating it three more times in a row. These successes bore the signature of the winning combination of the paddock's most coveted aerodynamic engineer Adrian Newey (now moved to Aston Martin) and driver Sebastian Vettel.

From 2016 Max Verstappen arrives in Red Bull, after his debut the previous year in the second Red Bull team, at the time called Toro Rosso (formerly Minardi, now Racing Bulls), at a time when the team faces a drop in performance compared to previous years due to the introduction of hybrid engines. From 2021 the new Red Bull cycle begins with Max Verstappen winning the drivers' championship four seasons in a row and the team winning the constructors' championship in 2022 and 2023. A cycle that Max does not want to break.

RISULTATI FINANZIARI RED BULL RACING

Just as Red Bull GmbH's financial figures demonstrate a solid enterprise, so do those of the Austrian giant's two racing teams. Both the first team, Red Bull Racing, and the second team in Faenza have recorded revenues above or in line with costs, consistently generating positive EBITDA and net profits during the last ten years. The Austrian stable has seen gradual growth in revenues, recording more than £250 million in 2022. Racing Bulls has also maintained revenues above costs, peaking in 2022 at over £160m for both items and debts below £50m in the same year.

What to expect from the Red Bull Ring

The Austrian Grand Prix lights up the European Formula 1 summer season. This event opens a cycle of six races that will end with the Monza Grand Prix on 7 September. The weekend, in standard format, includes qualifying at 4 p.m. on Saturday and the race at 3 p.m. on Sunday.

Expectations are all in McLaren's favour because of the high temperatures expected, but it is impossible not to give a chance to Max Verstappen, last year the author of sensational qualifying where he gave 4 tenths to the runner-up on a track that is run in just over a minute. It is worth remembering, however, how precisely the 2024 edition was the climax of the start of the rivalry between the two perhaps former friends, Max and Lando: a clash that allowed George Russell to take home a victory.